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Donald Trump’s Potential Pardon List
With less than a couple of days before his administration ends, outgoing President Donald Trump is planning to release a pardon list with 100 people, according to sources.
On Sunday, the president reportedly held a meeting with his aides to finalize a list of 100 people that he may provide clemency for. Included in the meeting are his daughter, Ivanka, and his son-in-law, Jared Kushner.
Trump’s final pardon list has not been released yet, so it is still uncertain who the president will pardon. However, sources say that many of them will be transactional in nature.
Since the White House has not released the list yet, many can only speculate or read reports about those potentially included in it.
Potential Pardon List
The president reportedly discussed a self-pardon as well as pre-emptive pardons for close allies. Lawyers, however, question the legality of a self-pardon. They also argue that his family members do not need any pre-emptive pardons.
Many are also speculating that the president will include rioters in the final list. Although, his allies in the Republican party are advising him not to push through with doing this. For one, Sen. Lindsey Graham (R-S.C.) said it would be “wrong” for Trump to pardon those people. She also said that the move might “destroy” the president even more and that she hopes he will make this decision.
Apart from these, many expect the president to pardon Dr. Salomon Melgen. Melgen is a Floriday eye doctor who is in prison for healthcare fraud. Also possibly included in the list are rappers Lil Wayne and Kodak Black.
Julian Assange, the founder of Wikileaks who was charged with espionage, and Edward Snowden, a fugitive who leaked U.S. National Security Agency surveillance operation files, were also reportedly being considered. However, legislators are asking the president to not grant these two people clemency.
If Trump’s plan of giving clemency to 100 people pushes through, the list is expected to be released any time on Monday or Tuesday. His term ends on Wednesday at noon, when President-elect Joe Biden takes his oath of office.
Trump is expected to head to his Mar-a-Lago property in Florida early Wednesday morning.
As of writing, the outgoing president has issued around 94 pardons. He issued 49 of these, which is more than half the total number, the week before Christmas, mostly to close political friends and allies.
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